Augusta, Ga. – The Georgia State women’s golf team finished
in 12th place at the Insperity Lady Jaguar Invitational on Sunday. The
Panthers began the tournament in 14th place on Friday and moved up one spot
each day.

Junior Laura Sanchez edged out her two fellow Panthers,
junior Maria Palacios and freshman Julie Lied, by one stroke to finish as the
top Panther. Sanchez tied for 50th after totaling a three day score
of 236. She shot a 79 (+7) on the third and final day.

Palacios shot her best round of the tournament, 74 (+2) on Sunday, to
move into 56th, alongside Lied, who shot a 79. Their
three days scores were 237.

“We really started
out poorly this morning, making doubles and triples,” coach Cathy Mant said
following the tournament. “It’s such a difficult thing to come back from that,
but I thought the girls mentally stayed in the game.

“Maria had a fine final round. I walked with Laura for 11 holes,
and while she went for a lot in the beginning, she played good golf at the end."

Junior Melissa Siviter finished tied for 69th after shooting
an 81 on the final day, bringing her total to 242. Senior Kimmy Graff rounded
out the Panthers with her 90th place finish (252).

No. 16 Purdue beat No. 9 Vanderbilt by one stroke, shooting 12-over for the 54-hole event. No. 26 Notre Dame came in third after finishing at 24-over. No. 22 Texas (898)
jumped to fourth place after a 2-over final round, and host Augusta State took fifth
place with a 906 total. Purdue had four players in the top ten, while
Vanderbilt had all five of its players in the top 20.

Notre Dame’s Ashley Armstrong was the tournament’s low
medalist with at 1-under par and the lone golfer to break par for the event. Just two strokes behind Armstong was Purdue’s No. 39
Paula Reto, who shot a 68 (-4) on the final day to finish at 1-over. Vanderbilt’s Jenny Hahn and
Augusta State’s No. 76 Natalie Wille tied for fourth at 2-over and Texas’s
Bertine Strauss rounded out the top five at 3-over.

“We are going to go away from this tournament a little
wounded, but we are also going to be looking at weaknesses and gearing up for the
John Kirk/Panther Intercollegiate,” Mant said.” We are looking forward to great
tournament next week.”

The Panthers will return to Atlanta and prepare to host the
John Kirk/Panther Intercollegiate, in Stockbridge, Ga., March 25 and 26.